Chicken Skin literally means “goose bumps”, only it is almost never used to describe the goose bumps themselves. While we normally think of goose bumps when we are chilled, in Hawaii we rarely use “chicken skin” to describe the temperature or the weather. Rather it is usually used to describe how we get goose bumps.
Something Scary: When a spooky story is told and the hairs on our arms stand up, we call this chicken skin.Many will actually use the term chicken skin when describing how scary the story is to them. [Morgan’s Corner was dark and mysterious, but when we took a ghost tour and they told us who died there and how, I got chicken skin!]
Something Coincidental: Ever see a photo of your grandfather as a child and remark how he looks exactly like your son? Ever have a song stuck in your head, only to hear your friend sing the exactly lyrics you were singing in your head? Ever hear about twins separated at birth, and learn that they lead the exact same lives and even married men that look exactly alike? “That is sooooo chicken skin!”
Something Memorable: The most memorable moments that give people a physical reaction tend to surround the national anthem (well, not recently). Watch old videos of the national anthem sung by Whitney Houston or Jennifer Hudson, or when an abbreviated version of the national anthem plays at the Olympics while our flag is being raised. There are also moments where amazing performances are done by keiki (young children) or kupuna (seniors). “Wow, grandma danced the hula at my wedding. It was so chicken skin“.
Something Great to Eat: Um… this doesn’t sound very healthy, but if you’re on vacation you may as well try this fantastic delicacy. A spin off of fried chicken, this is simply fried chicken skin. You could even compare this fried skin to chicharron (only it’s healthier, because it’s chicken… ha ha!). Try a batch. You may find that you like it so much the chicken skin may give you chicken skin!